Automated vs Continuous Testing

The terms “automated testing” and “continuous testing” are frequently used together. Although they work well together, they are not identical. Each of the two methods of automated testing and continuous testing have a significant impact on DevOps and Continuous Delivery.

Automated Testing

Automated testing is a technique where software carries out a series of predefined test steps. Those teststeps can come from a test script a human would usually run manually to review and validate an application.

As a human-driven test script execution is a timely and error ridden process. Automated testing has become the norm in many companies across the Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC).

Continuous Testing

Continuous testing is a practice aimed at ensuring that product quality and performance are tested over the entire SDLC . To achieve this, it might use a wide range of techniques and technologies to give you critical feedback as early as possible in the development process.

Conclusion

Automated testing is now considered standard practice. If you haven’t arrived yet, rest assured that you will be on your way soon. Continuous testing is the logical evolution. It is already being hailed as the final stage in the process of linking together Continuous Integration and Continuous Deployment to achieve Continuous Delivery.